BEAUMONT — Beaumont ISD's Board of Managers will vote Thursday on whether to change the name of its athletic complex. The decision could put an end a three-year battle.
Leaders have proposed renaming the Carrol A. "Butch" Thomas Educational Support Center. They would call the complex the Beaumont Independent School District Memorial Stadium. The district managers say the new name would bridge divisions in the community while paying tribute to all of the past high schools in Beaumont.
District managers face mounting opposition from the Beaumont NAACP. The Interim President of for the Beaumont Chapter, Brenda Spivery, has called on the district to leave Thomas' name on the stadium. She believes the current board has a personal vendetta against the former superintendent.
"It's really more of a personal issue," said Spivery. "I don't think the board that we elected is being fair."
Beaumont City Councilman Mike Getz approached the board in May, in support of the name change. He told 12News, "Those in support of Thomas need to read the audit and just see how bad his performance was as a superintendent."
Spivery says the NAACP will deliver almost three thousand signatures on a petition to the administration building before the vote by the board on Thursday.